Jun 3, 2016 |
You know that old phrase, “When life throws you lemons, make lemonade”?
Lemons
I’m not sure who coined that phrase, but I’m pretty sure he must have been pelted by a few lemons when he said it.
But then he probably made enough lemonade that the throwers decided it wasn’t all bad and they probably drank some of it.
Everything works out in the end, yah?
I’m in between the getting-hit-by-lemons and making-lemonade-out-of-it stages.
Babycakes, my precious MacBook Pro of over eight years, is beginning to fail me. She no longer has the software or capacity needed to do what I need her to do for my social media clients and my writing/editing.
She overheats more than she used to, and it ain’t the California desert that’s doing it to her.
And you thought I wasn’t blogging just because I was too busy. I’m never too busy for you, my Swarm!
But Babycakes, well, I have to be gentle with her. Gone are the days of easy newslettering, fast posts, and faster photos.
And I don’t mind telling you, business has picked up since Blue Ridge. I can’t afford to have my computer slow down.
So after much prayer, and nudges from several people unaware (“You should start a GoFundMe!”), here I am.
I’ve made a list, ran the numbers, and I think I’ve come up with a decent game plan.
My goal is incremental:
- Replace laptop
- Purchase external optical drive
- Purchase office software
- Replace mic/headphones
- Purchase carrying case/backpack
- Purchase protective sleeve/skin
In just four days, I’m nearly 25% funded, which is very exciting. It’s so exciting, in fact, that I want to give something back.
But what to do?
Lo and behold, my Swarm has the answer. What would I use a laptop for? Writing, editing, social media, and photography.
How would you like a sampling of all of the above?
You would? That’s awesome!
NOLA, Chapter One and Other Writings
I just put together a 64-page digital download that includes
- NOLA, Chapter 1
- Four short stories
- Ninja Bee Social Media Tips
- Two poems on Faith
- Three recipes from The Unemployment Cookbook
- A dissection of Jeremiah 29:11, NIV
- A few photos
- My thank you letter
This is a free offering to everyone who donates to my Molly Needs a Mac campaign.
Here’s the kicker. I just spent a good two hours inserting hyperlinks into the document and saving it, only to find my Word software isn’t updated and the links won’t work. There’s no small irony in the fact it’s 2:30 am PST and I’ve been working on the download and this blog post for over six hours. Which just proves my point that I need a new computer as soon as possible.
If you would like to receive your free copy of NOLA, Chapter One and Other Writings, just visit my GoFundMe campaign and make a donation of any amount. Once I receive notice of your donation, I’ll email you the PDF within 24 hours.
And please share this post and the campaign with anyone you think might enjoy a good read.
With warm wishes and cold sweet tea,
~Molly Jo
Dec 12, 2015 |
The gift giving season is upon us and there’s always that one person who’s difficult to buy for. Am I right? And usually, it’s the write person. (See what I did there?)
On this week’s upcoming Firsts in Fiction podcast, we’re talking about that very subject. Over the last week, we (and by we, I mean Aaron, Al, and myself, along with our merry media elves) have posed this question:
What’s a great gift to get the author in your life?
Finding the Write Gift
While I don’t want to give away the store (err, answers) here, I thought I’d at least share some of the FIF Family’s suggestions.
So put on your Santa hat and have a ho-ho-holiday time as we count down the best gifts to get your writer.
1. A private island. (Molly)
A Writer’s Paradise – a Private Island
Seriously. How often has your writer tried to get away from it all by locking themselves in the back room, sitting in a car, or running away to a coffee shop? See No. 3, below. Seclusion is necessary for the writer. In order to create our own worlds, we have to shut out the real one. A writer’s island holds no distractions like TV, ringing phones, or ~ dare I say it ~ the occasional familius interruptus.
More practical:
- noise-cancelling headphones
- a gift card for a spa day or one night at a hotel
- pocket notebooks to jot notes in when your writer can’t get to their workspace
- GIFT BASKET OPTIONS: white noise CD, postcard, small plant, candle
2. A private jet. (Al)
A Private Jet for Your Traveling Writer
Writing isn’t just writing anymore. Now it means book signings, conferences, marketing meetings, publicity appearances and more. A private jet is the ticket to get your writer out the door and back home faster. And with no other passengers to distract him or her, it also serves as a mobile private island. See No. 1, above.
More practical:
- gas cards and travel expenses
- writers conferences and retreats
- offer to keep them company and drive them to their next writing commitment
- GIFT BASKET OPTIONS: travel journal, map, luggage tags, small photo album
3. A cafe/bistro/restaurant of their own. (Molly, Aaron, Al)
The Write Cafe
We all know writers have ink in their veins. Let’s not ignore the caffeine IV they require. How often have you stopped into a Starbucks and seen someone leaning over their laptop, typing frantically with one hand while holding their coffee in the other? A small cafe allows someone else to be responsible for the food and clean up. All the writer has to do is write. And, bonus, when that book contract is finally signed and the manuscript published, you already have a place to invite everyone to celebrate the success!
More practical:
- treat them (and their family) to a nice dinner
- gift card to their favorite coffee shop
- single-serve coffee maker and a month’s worth of coffee
- GIFT BASKET OPTIONS: creamer, individual serving tray, souvenir mug, tea spoon
4. An office supply store. (Molly, Aaron, Al)
Endless Office Supplies
Solve the problem of running out of ink and paper by giving your writer full and permanent access to everything imaginable from a new computer to colored paperclips. No more moments of frustration when they can’t find their favorite brand of pen. And when they start a new project, they can supply their writing space in coordinating themes and colors.
More practical:
- ink and paper
- computer maintenance program
- mailing supplies
- GIFT BASKET OPTIONS: desk organizers, day planner, journal/pen set, stickee notes
5. A private library. (Aaron)
Just what a writer needs – more books.
Research is essential to writing a compelling story, but small town libraries (and some bigger ones) don’t always work out. Books are checked out by others. Magazines are ripped and torn. Plus, you can’t keep any of them. A private library assures your writer their much needed references will be available any time they need. When one thought rabbit trails to another, at least you’ll still be able to find your writer in the stacks. Information is King, and you just gave your writer the kingdom.
More practical:
- new computer and software
- Kindle or other eReader and a gift card for downloads
- external hard drive
- GIFT BASKET OPTIONS: books on writing, collector’s editions of favorite books, magazine/newspaper subscription, gift card to book stores
And since we’re in the season of giving, here’s an extra entry. Give. Most writers supplement their writing income by teaching, editing, and a plethora of other talents. It takes time, energy and resources away from their works-in-progress. You can help them hurdle over the starving artist syndrome by donating:
- Time. Clean their house, run errands, be a once-a-week personal assistant.
- Resources. Do you have connections or knowledge that can move their story along?
- Money. It costs a lot to live the write life. Even without the big-ticket items in this post.
What gift ideas do you have for the writer in your world? Leave a comment here and join us Tuesday, December 15 at 6:30 PST for this year’s Firsts in Fiction Holiday Podcast: Finding the Write Gift.
[If you have a question for the authors visit Aaron’s website for Ask The Author and if he uses your question on air this week, you’ll get a code for a free audio download of his novel, The Bargain. You don’t have to be a writer, and you don’t have to view the podcast to participate.]
And Frankly, My Dear . . . that’s all she wrote!
Aug 12, 2012 |
My daughter has an iPhone 4S. She bought it with money she received for her high school graduation. I, having not graduated recently, still have my two-year-old Android.
In the past two months, I have grown convinced that an iPhone is the phone for me. And this is my official notice that it is now tops on my Christmas List this year. (Or, Hallowe’en treat. Or back-to-school special. Or just “I’m thinking of you NOW” gift, if whoever-you-are is feeling prematurely presentatious.)
The differences between my Droid and Dot’s 4S, in no particular technical order, are:
- My battery no longer holds a decent charge. It stays plugged in to the wall 3 times more often than not. Even after being replaced six weeks ago. Dot’s battery has lasted her through four days of camping. Granted, she turned it off, often. But I know dollars-to-donuts my Droid wouldn’t have turned back on after Day 2.
- Her iPhone camera is far, far better than mine. I’d rather not demonstrate. It’s depressing.
- My Droid freezes up often when texting, or opens random applications (Calendar or ColorNotes, for example). Dot’s applications work when, and only when, she wants them to.
- My Droid overheats. Often. Regularly. Her iPhone never does. Never.
- Where Dot has chosen some amazing games and applications, I worry about adding anything new to my Droid.
- Her screen is bigger than mine.
- Hers is white. Mine is the basic black/steel looking frame.
- The iPhone has iTunes.
- The iPhone has Siri.
- Since we are an Apple/Mac family, the iPhone would work better with my laptop.
- Since we are an Apple/Mac family, if I had problems with the iPhone, my brother (whom I affectionately refer to as my unofficial business manager and techie guru) can resolve any such issue. Notsomuch with my Droid.
- Instagram. Need I say more?
- Because I do so much internet/social media work, it’s essential for me to have a dependable
hand computer smart phone.
I asked friends if they preferred iPhones over Droids or other cell phones, and the overwhelming response was
“DUH.”
Which leaves me with this one last reason to save for an iPhone:
- Because I want one. Period.
My dear friend Lisa thinks Apple should offer me an iPhone for a product review. I agree. But that’s just me.
Are you listening, Apple? Hello? Just a bite? Please?
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
Oct 21, 2011 |
by Molly Jo Realy @MollyJoRealy
That’s not a typo… this blog title really is Self slash Public slash ation. Well, the first two parts stand alone. The last? I guess you call that an emphasis, the uniter.
Part One: Self.
I’m stubborn. I love my stability and my structured schedule. I’m set in my ways. I’m okay with change, even if it hasn’t been anticipated… as long as it’s not drastic. I’m old-fashioned, and set in my ways. Yeah, I’m a real catch for a go-with-the-flow kinda crowd. (*please tell me you get the sarcasm, here).
I look for stories everywhere. I write them out; sometimes for me, sometimes for …
Part Two: Public.
That’s “You”. That’s my family, my friends, my peeps. The ones who see me in the world and wonder how they influence me. The strangers who are oblivious to my Big Brother eyes and ears. The readers.
You read books. You go to libraries and bookstores and smell the dust and feel the old pages.
And now, you download the text.
So. Here I am. Old school book reader trying to be a writer who’s inspired by old-fashioned stories like Little Women and Sherlock Holmes and Anne of Green Gables.
And I use technology to search, and re-search, and research my re-search. And I use technology to find what I’m looking for, and to guide me to solutions I didn’t even realize I was researching.
Selfishly, I don’t like e-books and downloads. You can’t bookmark a digital copy. You can’t smell the aroma of gilt-edged pages or feel the texture of dust-embedded sheets. You can’t autograph a computer screen . . . and keep it that way.
But the public likes to take five books out in public when it doesn’t weigh as much as one. You like to computer generate your highlights and type notes in the margins if you can.
I’m in a tug of war between my old-fashioned comfort and the new techno-world. I love the beauty of my old typewriter (thanks, Pam!), but I would be lost without my MacBook.
On one side, I’ve heard the stories that publishers and agents don’t really respect those who publish themselves. It’s like all the flack about the first season of American Idol: the winner didn’t put in her dues, her time and effort. She didn’t come up through the trenches the way other great singers did. Having argued all that, they still know her name, ten years later. Kelly Clarkson’s still singing. With a record deal. That’s worth noting.
On the other side, technology is the way of the world. The internet is everywhere and everyone wants it at their fingertips… their digital, less-than-two pounds, wireless world.
Part Three: (N)ation, where (N) is the (N)-factor. The unknown. The, what-the-heck-am-I-gonna-do puzzle piece.
I want to be published. I want the public to read what I write. I want book signings and recognition and “oh my gosh, you spoke to my heart” fans. I want to be heard. I want to know that I’m making a difference. I want my readers to know that I write for them.
I need to write, like I need to breathe. I need to put into words the world around me, so that my grandchildren will understand, and want to know their history and heritage. I need to write it out, to be peaceful within.
I need a publisher and an agent. I’m ready. I have good-to-go material… with nowhere to go. And I’m all over the place. I have a screenplay, a novel, tons of prose and poems, two songs, a Christian devotional study, and a cookbook. And those are just the finished products; to say nothing of all the other writings still “in progress”.
My pages are all dressed up, and haven’t been invited to the party.
So now I’m thinking of letting them have their own party… I’m thinking of dipping my toe into the self-pub pool. Or even print-on-demand.
It goes against so much in me… but it may be the only way, right now, I can fully let it out.
So. Here’s my question: to self-publish, or not to self-publish? And if self-publishing: print on demand? eBook options? Or bulk for sales? Do I try to get an agent or publisher? If yes, then how? Do I self-publish? If yes, how much? Everything? Or just start with the cookbook? How do I market? Is it more-than-slightly self-serving to post my own product on my own blog? How is that different from regular advertising? What about my street credit? If I self-publish/print-on-demand, how will that stand up later when I need a big printing house/publisher to pay attention? Will they dismiss me, or say I’ve got the drive?
What options are the best options; not just for now, but for the long-term?
You’ve been so great at reading. Now it’s my turn. These are legitimate questions, and I’m looking for your answers. What do you think about publishing and self-publishing? What about agents and big companies and little presses? Are you a writer with advice, or a reader with inspirations? Whatcha got? I’m in need of a lot of honest feedback before I make up my mind. So spill. Share. And suggest.
I’m listening… and taking notes.
